[...] RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!This is a guest post from Mark Cunningham, one of the co-authors of The Prosperous Peasant. Cunningham is a member of the Woodstock Writers Guild, the monthly writing group to which I [...]

FYI: I would love to recommend a great little book that I just finished. It’s called The Go-Giver The authors are Bob Burg and John David Mann. Between the pages of the simple message are powerful results. I am putting them into action in my business. I would love to hear yours and others’ critique on this book.

[...] Get Rich Slowly does a great review of The Prosperous Peasant and reveals the 5 principles for a successful, fulfilling life. [...]

[...] If you’re new here, you may want to learn what this site is about. I encourage you to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!This guest post from Tim Clark is a response to an “Ask the Readers” segment from two weeks ago. Tim is one of the authors of The Prosperous Peasant. [...]

[...] at getrichslowly wrote of his inner conflict while reviewing his friend’s new book on personal [...]

Hope you good luck with your blog and your PF life

Sincerely,
Suleman

One of my favorite public figures, who is very successful, and probably the leader in his field, consistently states words to effect “don’t worry about the money, do what you love, and the money will follow.”

I am also reminded of a series of books I read many decades ago by OG Mandino, in particular, “THE GREATEST SALESMAN IN THE WORLD.” http://www.ogmandino.com/

Please let your friend know I enjoyed the exerpt, will order a copy after the first of the year.

You were wise in presenting this post.

Thanks
Gregg

I’ve been decluttering the house and whilst some stuff is being sold off, I’ve also Freecycled a lot too. Surprisingly we’ve also managed to acquire things through Freecycle that we would have had to buy at some point. There’s a moral there and I’ll have to try and think of a catchy title for it!!

Tim Clark posed the same question when we first discussed working together on THE PROSPEROUS PEASANT. My favorite titles in this arena may be a bit unconventional, but for years a small group of inspirational classics have inspired me with their unique outlooks on success and its wellsprings. Each of these (perhaps with the exception of the Gita) stresses the primary importance of deriving fulfillment from an endeavor:

SELF RELIANCE by Ralph Waldo Emerson (a relatively short essay exploring how we learn to trust our instincts and commit ourselves wholly to an undertaking).

WALDEN by Henry David Thoreau (explores self-trust, how we may pursue our dreams by cultivating plans, the economics of simple living, and the meaning of success).

THE BHAGAVAD GITA (which has a lot to say about the importance of constant action).

AS A MAN THINKETH by James Allen (Tim Clark introduced me to this one recently. It’s rich with nuggets of wisdom).

Cheers,
Mark
http://www.TheProsperousPeasant.com

I think (and I have only read the sample chapter) but this book seems like it deals with both fulfillment and finances. That’s what I like about it.

I like to read direct success stories and advice like this blog too.

It’s just that different people understand things in different ways and for some of us the parables are a nice addition to the direct logic.

To paraphrase what someone said to me…I rather be rich and unfullfilled, than poor and unfullfilled. So while money may not bring satisfaction from a holistic perspective, atleast I get to drown my misery in style!

Hey, I’ll sign up for a chance at a free copy, but it looks like it’s worth it to buy.

Don’t feel bad; I misspelled “entrepreneurial” in the 36-point title of a newsletter once, which led to its being reprinted at full cost. Good times….

“All men of grateful spirit can achieve success if they work to make the most of their talents.”

I have daughters, and I find phrases that eliminate 51% of the Earth population to be hidden sexism (and perhaps subconscious; I’m not accusing your friend), and as such a turn off. It wouldn’t have killed your friend to write “People of grateful spirit…” Perhaps if he writes a second edition he might remember that were it not for his mother (as well as his father) he wouldn’t be here.

I was really, really impressed with the sample chapter. So much so that I thought about it tonight and came back to comment.

I would have commented on their blog, but it’s does not seem to be exactly related to the book yet, so maybe this is also an appropriate place to do it.

For those that read the sample chapter what impressed me in the parable was that the man (after squandering his money) built his fortune by:

1) Remembering who he owed loyalty to
2) Working hard
3) Living simply
and
4) Giving his money to someone who knew how to invest it wisely.

It’s number 4 that I wanted to talk about here. I sure would love to see some posts and / or running commentary on the entire do it yourself investing vs. having someone do it for you. I see from previous posts that you use Sharebuilder, what is the rest of your plan?

Is there a way to balance personal investments with supervised investments other than a 401k?

Just thoughts.

It’s eternal, and it’s a typo. I am so embarrassed…

Thanks for the book review – Another book for my reading list!

“But there are five enteral principles on which the ancients’ prosperity was founded….”

I think they were going for something like “gut truths” here, but enteral is an alternate rendering of enteric, which still very literally means “of or relating to the intestines.” Maybe it’s just because I’m a medical editor. Still, it sounds out of place coming from a medieval Japanese person.

I for one am still looking forward keenly to the Get Rich Slowly book of this blog!

You can send a free book to me if you want to…

I also disagree with the notion that extraordinary effort leads to extraordinary results. One has to choose carefully what to invest blood, sweat and tears in. Sometimes you may invest these things and simply get a pat on the back at the end.

I’ve realized in reading books after books on “getting rich”, “becoming a better person”, etc., that most authors are saying the same things over and over, with the exception of some more contemporary works such as The 4 Hour Workweek or some of the new takes on economics as applied to social phenomena such as seen in Freakonomics and Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point.

So even though I include the latter half of those books in my reading repertoire, I’ve been focusing on some of the more classic stories such as Ragged Dick, or The Worldly Philosophers. Achieiving success is a product of fiding simple habits. To get into the true psychology and philosophy behind the 1000′s of books out there. It’s time to come back to storytelling and canonical works in philosophy.

Great post, I’m glad I came across this!